Shattered
by Hatone-Kudasaki
Summary: Strange portals have been opening up across the ninja world and Britannia. What happens when people from two different worlds encounter? What's been causing the portals to activate? Can they find the source to this mystery? NOT a yaoi.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

He swiftly and frustratingly preformed the hand signs once again; panting and keeping his footing firmly on the ground. The wind whipped wildly around the area of the forest. The leaves from the trees and bushes rustled around violently. The wind started to form around in a circle in the air. A very small hole, the size of a dime, began to open. His hands tightly clenched in the hand sign as they started to tremble. He grunted and panted, trying to open the hole wider. "Gahh!" He dropped his hands to his side, and everything stopped. "Close... I'm close..." The man in black took a moment to catch his breath. He got his footing back and did the hand sign once again. He closed his eyes; the left one barley visible through his mask. He concentrated harder, the wind whipping wilder. The hole appeared in the middle of the air once again. It struggled to open wider, like a rip in a cloth blanket. His short, black, spiky hair was tossed around by the violent winds. The hole opened up to the size of a door. He was able to drop the hand sign and the wind stopped. He opened the hole that it could stand on its own for a matter of time. Inside looked like a spinning galaxy of stars and blackness.

"Finally," Madara Uchiha smirked under his mask. He took one step into the vortex and a blinding white light consumed him. A tear ripped open somewhere else and Madara stepped out, the vortex closing back up behind him. The new world was a completely different place from where he just came from. It was a place high in the clouds shaded by different hues of orange and yellow. Almost like a permanent sunset. Madara stood at the beginning of a long staircase. At the end of the stairs was a building that looked like a piece of old Greek architecture. There was a man in there, unaware of the intruder. The man had his back towards the newcomer; he was looking past two pliers that framed the sunset colored sky. This man was an older man. He had white hair that looked similar to a powered wig and was pudgy. Madara made his way up the stairs in zero time. His footstep on the platform made a clacking sound against the concrete, which he knew the man would hear. The man looked over his shoulder; however he didn't look surprised or even fazed.

"Who are you?" the white haired man questioned now facing Madara.

"You seem like a man of business," Madara began as he took a few steps closer. The man known as Charles gave the intruder a look and ignored his comment. "What are your reasons for being here?"

"I want to offer you an alliance." Madara tilted his head down and peered up with his Sharingan eye. Charles's expression changed seeing his eye now different. "What kind of alliance?" his tone was now different than it was only a few seconds ago.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Kikuhana piled her hair to one side as she watched one of her closest friends pace around the room gathering his belongings. Kiku pulled one of her legs into her chest and crossed it somewhat; the other leg remained folded underneath her as she lingered on the chair. She chuckled a bit as the green-eyed teen passed her again.

"Suzaku, it's going to be fine," She informed him, the boy half smiled at her. Kikuhana knew that today was a huge event; today was the day Princess Euphemia was going to pass the Special Administrative Zone of Japan. As long as the Japanese people remained in this area they wouldn't be labeled as a number; they would be able to take back their name and call themselves by what they were, Japanese. On top of that, the Princess made it clear how she wanted the people of Britannia and the Japanese to be treated as equals as long as they were in that Administrative Zone. Kiku stood to her feet; her long dark brown hair fell back into its original form and style. She made her way to Suzaku, stopping a few inches from him and placing a blue and white pin into his vest. This pen was a symbol, a symbol that told everyone he was the Knight of the Third Princess of Britannia.

"Take care of yourself, I'll be here when you get back," The girl patted the pen on his jacket before turning to leave the room. Kiku had mixed emotions about the whole thing. She was happy knowing that Suzaku, even as an Honorary Britannian, he was still Japanese himself. She knew that he wouldn't have to worry here, or better yet, she would have to worry about him. Yet, at the same time, she felt uneasy. She thought it was nerves getting the best of her, but why? She wasn't the one going out there; it was just going to be The Japanese, some Britannia's, Suzaku, Euphemia and…Zero. That was right, Kiku had forgotten about _him_.

"You don't know if he'll even show," Kiku told herself as she sighed. She knew the man behind the mask; she knew that he didn't seem happy about the plan. However there was apart of her wanted to believe he would show today. She wanted to believe that Lelouch would put his feelings aside to stand behind what Suzaku and Euphemia thought was right.

* * *

Itachi and Hatone had just finished another mission together. They had to give a brief repot back to the Akatsuki leader about their mission before they were free to do what they wished. During reports, most of the time Hatone would keep silent while Itachi spoke. The seventeen-year old didn't like to speak to the leader, he was too cold. She kept her hands to her side and stared down at her feet; occasionally gripping onto the fabric of her Akatsuki cloak. Unlike the other members' cloaks, Hatone's cloak only went a little bit passed her knees. She cut it shorter because she was known to be klutzy and tripped over the thing half of the time. The report was simple and to the point. The leader's hologram vanished which meant the two were excused. Once they were outside of the hideout, Hatone began to take her Akatsuki cloak off. She preferred to wear her usual ninja attire, and always wore it under the cloak. She was required to wear her cloak during missions, the rest of the time she could leave it off so she did. Once Hatone took the cloak off, long, straight, orange hair came cascading down her back which stretched to her waist. Itachi began walking away from the hideout, taking the same path he did whenever he finished a mission. Hatone knew where he was going and followed him. She walked beside him in silence. Every time Itachi and Hatone would finish a mission they would go to a tea shop to relax. It was a tradition they had started when they were younger. The silence wasn't awkward, nor was it unusual. They had become used to walking down the same path silently; just listening to the natural sounds around them. The tea shop was a small little resting stop for travelers. It was the perfect place for two rouge ninja to stop by without worrying about being noticed. It was peaceful, small, sold good tea and the waiters and waitresses were nice people. Itachi normally ordered green tea, while Hatone liked any kind of tea as long as it had some sort of peach flavoring to it. They ordered a small plate of dumplings to share.

Most of the time Itachi and Hatone spoke to one another while on missions or just hanging around. However, they enjoyed their tradition of drinking tea and taking small walks after a mission in silence. Not because they annoyed each other, but because it was serene. The duo would generally spend around 45 minutes in the shop before leaving. Itachi left a tip for the waiter just as they were about to leave. Hatone kept her eyes forward and a soft smile appeared on her lips.

"Thank you," she said tenderly to Itachi. This was where Itachi would tell her that she didn't need to thank him every time, but this time he didn't tell her that. Itachi fixed his black eyes on her and his gaze softened before he replied.

"You're welcome,"

Hatone pushed the door open and Itachi followed close behind her. They both realized how quickly it became windy. Clouds had appeared out of nowhere, which started to make the sky turn gray. This was a bizarre change in the weather, seeing that merely an hour ago there wasn't a cloud in sight. There was obviously a storm rolling in, much faster than expected. They tried to make it their best effort to get back before the storm itself actually hit, but it kept getting windier and cloudier as they walked. Before they knew it, there were all kinds of debris flying around in the air as the wind grew fierce. It started to become hard to see anything 5 feet in front of them. Hatone clutched onto Itachi's left arm as they struggled against the storm. They didn't want to become separated because it was now very easy to get lost. They hadn't realized it yet, but Itachi and Hatone were just walking deeper into the forest.

Suddenly, Hatone began to feel her left side being tugged. She slapped her hand to her side, hoping to shoo whatever was pulling on her away. The pulling became stronger and stronger as the wind swished so violently everything around them looked like a giant gray blur. Hatone's feet began to lift off the ground. She grabbed onto Itachi's other arm and screamed his name. Itachi had a strong grip on her shoulder and tried to get a better grip on her back so he could pull her down. Just as Itachi lifted his hand, Hatone flew out of his arms. Itachi's black eyes widened in astonishment. The vacuum that pulled Hatone away lifted Itachi off the ground and pulled him in the same direction. The last thing they saw was a blinding shine of white light.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

There were sounds of commotion surrounding them. The noise started out blurry and faint but grew louder and clearer as he started to wake up. He felt the coldness of concrete pressed against his cheek as his eyes slowly opened. Itachi glanced around for a moment with hazy vision. He pushed himself up off the ground and sat up, holding onto his head. He closed his eyes tightly and reopened them, able to see clearly again. He looked around and saw he was in a place that was alien to him. There were large, tall concrete buildings, sidewalks, streets made of asphalt. There was also debris lying around everywhere and some of what appeared to be bloodstains. Hatone lied on the ground several feet away. Itachi stood to his feet and rushed to her side. He rolled her over so she was on her back and her hair fell away from her face.

"Hatone," Itachi called her name as he started to nudge her awake. Her eyebrows furrowed and she moaned a bit before opening her eyes. Like Itachi, her vision was blurry when she first woke up, but was able to shake it off. Itachi helped her sit up. She looked around the area in wonder and amazement. To her this was all very much like a dream state.

"Where are we…?" Hatone asked faintly as she brought her gaze back to Itachi.

"I don't know," Itachi replied. The two got to their feet as they continued to look around at the foreign place. Hatone also noticed the debris and the red stains on some of the rubble.

"It looks like there was some kind of… war." Hatone observed.

"I was thinking just that. If this is a battleground, we should probably get out of it." Itachi told her. Itachi took Hatone by the hand as they wandered around the streets. Neither of them had any idea of where to go, but they had to go somewhere. As they walked there was less and less rubble and blood lying around, which meant they were heading out of the "battleground". There was a very large flat screen TV on one of the buildings; on the TV was a reporter. Itachi and Hatone brought their attention to the TV, in hopes they would learn something about the place they were in. The reporter kept mentioning words like "Area 11" and "Britannia", both of which made no sense to either one of them. There was one word, however, that caught their attention: Massacre. Hearing the word made Hatone jump a bit and Itachi's hand twitch. The reporter was also talking about a "Princess Euphemia", but that was unimportant to them.

"Where do you think we are?" Hatone asked Itachi, looking up at him.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." Itachi responded.

The two proceeded on their journey to find out exactly where they were. They cut through alleys, around buildings, through parks and so on. The streets started to fill with people the more they went on. This worried Hatone; afraid that someone would notice them, who they were. No one spoke to them. A few people gave them strange glances, but nothing more than that.

Nightfall was approaching rather quickly and the two seemed to be getting nowhere. They knew they would have to eventually stop and rest for the night; but even finding a place to rest was complicated. Itachi didn't trust the place to go into a hotel or rest stop and there was so sign of a forest near by. They kept walking until they happened upon a nice looking building with pretty landscaping. It had a fairly large courtyard with trees, bushes and a fountain. There didn't appear to be anyone in the building or around the area. Itachi brought Hatone into the courtyard. They did a quick check around the area to make sure no one was there before Itachi turned to face Hatone.

"We'll stay here for tonight and try to find answers in the morning." Itachi told her. Hatone barley glanced up and him and nodded a bit. Itachi cupped her cheek and brought his face down at the same level with hers. "What's the matter?" Itachi asked, becoming concerned. Hatone blushed faintly but her expression remained the same.

"It's just…" Hatone couldn't quite find the right words, but Itachi understood her.

"I know. I'll find a way to get us back home, Hatone. I promise." Itachi whispered softly to her. Hatone closed her eyes and blushed just a bit more.

"Ok," she replied. Itachi looked up at the tree they were next too and waited for Hatone to climb up it before he did. They rested on the branches towards the middle; Hatone on a higher branch than Itachi. The trees in this place weren't nearly as big as the ones they were used to back home, but they had to settle for it.

* * *

Kikuhana sat with her back against the wall, her knees in her chest, eyes tightly shut. Her hands pressed firmly against her ears. There were still the sounds of screaming and gun shots echoing in her head, even though it was long over. The horrifying images flashed across her mind once more as she pulled her knees deeper into her chest. Kikuhana starting trembling.

_How did this happen? Where did things go wrong?_ Were the only questions that kept replaying in her head like a broken record. Hours before things were going so well, and now it was a living horror. Tears started to slowly roll down her face; she didn't want to be in the room alone and scared. She wanted be with Lelouch or Suzaku…but she couldn't she was fearful to see them …especially after this.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Kikuhana was at school, its not like she wanted to be there but she had no other option really. The classes seemed much longer then they usually were. Seconds acted like minutes and minutes like hours. Kiku wondered if she could somehow escape at lunch, to have sometime alone to think... Sadly that wasn't the case. Most of the students talked about yesterday's tragic event. Kikuhana walked on the balcony of the school and leaned on the rail, seeing the spot where she usually ate with her friends. Most of the Student Counsel was there like normal, all but three; Kallen, Lelouch and Suzaku. Kallen had the 'sick girl' act so no one thought twice if she wasn't at school. Suzaku was absent for obvious reasons, as was Lelouch. No one else knew about Lelouch being Princess Euphemia's sister; no one but Suzaku and Kikuhana. Kikuhana felt sick to her core, she wanted to go home, and she wanted to avoid two of her friends as much as she could. But how was she planning on doing that? For one thing Kiku worked with Suzaku; she was also a Black Knight member. The girl laced her fingers through her hair, frustrated by the situation. The bell then rang, telling students to get back to class.

* * *

Three hours later class ended. The 17 year old teen felt a form of relief; however the knot tightening feeling was still there. Kiku was going to walk home, considering her ride had probably left for work. Kiku started walking across campus, only a few students-still in uniform-hung around to chat. She saw the school's gate only a few feet away but stopped. Her stomach turned and her throat locked when she saw Rolo, he was Lelouch's brother. _I need to get home,_ she thought, becoming more uneasy, not knowing if Lelouch would even be with him. However she didn't want to take the chance. Something caught her eye; there were two people on the school grounds, a boy and a girl. The girl had long orange hair and then man had long black hair that was in a low ponytail. This shouldn't have been a big deal considering other people were there. But it was the way they were dressed that grabbed Kiku's attention. _Who...are they?_ The brown hair, brown eyed girl walked up to the duo. The girl in green looked scared and confused while the man she was with seemed unfazed, at least he acted that way.

"Um, excuse me...can I help you?" Kiku questioned coming to a stop. Itachi flashed his black eyes to the girl who approached them. The brunette wore a curious expression. She seemed like a harmless school girl; holding books and in a uniform. Hatone hesitated to speak. She kept glancing up at Itachi and back to the girl.

"Where exactly is this place?" Itachi asked after a long pause.

"You're at Ashford Academy," Kiku answered them, slight curiosity still in her voice.

"Are you two looking for someone?" She tilted her head slightly, the dark strands of hair swept across her eyes. Itachi scanned his eyes across the schoolyard again.

"No one in particular," he answered. Hatone kept her worried expression worn on her face. Someone finally approached them after running around in the strange new world for a day. She fiddled with the Uchiha crest pendant around her neck. The nauseated feeling returned as Kiku took a step back. The man was intimating. She glanced at the girl. _What is going on here?_ Kiku stared at the two, slightly confused and concerned. Hatone had been anxious from the moment they had arrived in this world. Itachi could since the girl starting to grow uneasy and wondered if she was getting the feeling off of Hatone.

"W...we're just trying to figure things out..." Hatone finally spoke in a quite, soft voice. _F__igure things…?_ Kiku straighten her stance.

"Oh, so, are you two exchange students?" she brushed a lock of hair behind her ear so that the nervous girl could see her face more. Hatone felt her eyes slightly widen. She didn't know just how well her lies would work, or if they would make since to the girl.

"Yeah," Itachi answered for her. "We're exchange students." Kiku glanced up at the man, locking eyes with him for a moment before looking back at the girl.

"That being the case, do you both want to come with me to my place? That way you could call your hotel and get settled in." She smiled warmly at the two as she waited for an answer from the girl, however she had a feeling her friend would answer for her. Itachi and Hatone exchanged glances at one another. Hatone bit her lip a bit before she slightly nodded her head. Itachi's face softened a bit before he took his glance off Hatone. The girl seemed nice enough. She appeared to be a harmless, unsuspecting school girl. For now, she could be trusted enough for Itachi and Hatone to go with her.

"That would be very kind of you," Hatone replied in the same, soft voice with a warm smile to go with her answer. Kikuhana returned the smile to the girl; it was nice to hear her talk.

"If you two are ready we can go," She almost turned to started walking but paused, "I'm Kikuhana by the way," Once again, Hatone looked up at Itachi for an answer.

"Itachi," he replied with the same dull voice he's been using.

"I'm Hatone," Hatone replied with a small, slightly nervous smile. They had no idea if their names would be recognized here, which is why Itachi chose not to mention his last name.

"Well it's very nice to meet you both, I'm sure you'll adapt to the school nicely," Kiku added as she started walking. In a way Kiku was surprised by her fast actions to invite them into her home, but it was to help them and she needed to keep her mind occupied. Despite Kikuhana's kindness, Hatone still felt uneasy about the whole situation. Itachi, naturally, kept his guard up, ready for just about anything to happen. Hatone tried to keep her mind from wandering. She had a habit of making up exaggerated scenarios in her head whenever she became paranoid... which was a lot. Even so, she had to remind herself: Kikuhana was just a seemingly innocent school girl. What's the worst that can go wrong?


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The sun was starting to set by the time the three got back to her apartment. Kikuhana stuck the key in the lock and turned it, she heard it click and she opened the door. "Make yourselves at home," She said entering and throwing her bag to the side and putting the books on a table. Hatone and Itachi entered the apartment. Hatone grew more cautious. She slightly gripped the back of Itachi's cloak. The two glanced around the room. Hatone wanted to ask questions, but she didn't know what exactly to ask. She just chose to remain quiet, she didn't know if she would say or asking something wrong. Kikuhana turned around to look at the duo, her gaze meet the girl's. "Would you like to borrow a change of clothes? I mean, since you don't have your bags." She smiled a little before looking up at the guy. "I can see what I can find you...however I don't think any of his stuff will fit you..." Kiku laughed almost shy by that. "Uh, anyway, Itachi,"

She hoped she got his name right. "You can use the phone to call your hotel if you want." Itachi paused before he unbuttoned his cloak.

"No, that's alright. I'm fine with the clothes I have," Itachi told Kikuhana has he slid the cloak off his shoulders. "About the hotel; we lost the number and the hotel has our belongings. But don't concern yourself over it; we can take care of it on our own in the morning." Itachi added while crossing his arms and leaning on the arm of the couch.

Itachi glanced down at Hatone. "You should take up her offer," Itachi told the timid redhead. Hatone nodded and looked back at Kikuhana. "Um, if you wouldn't mind I'd like to change."

"Alright, just follow me," She said turning to walk towards her room. From the corner of her eye she saw Hatone glance at Itachi before coming with her, she smiled a bit. Hatone stood behind Kikuhana, quietly fiddling with her thumbs as Kikuhana shuffled through her drawer in search of some old clothes for Hatone to wear. Kikuhana pulled out a baggy white shirt, which was a boys', and faded red shorts. She pointed to the bathroom letting her know she could change in there. Hatone bowed her head politely before she took the clothes to change. _So far everything seems to be going ok... everything will be ok... I'm just over-thinking things again... _Hatone shook her head to snap out of her thoughts and finished changing. Hatone stepped out of the bathroom with her clothes folded neatly in her arms. Kiku smiled softly at the redhead,

"I'll take care of those for you in a second. I just need to make a call real quick." Hatone blushed slightly.

"Oh, there's no need for that. I can do it myself, really-" Kikuhana was already in the other room. Itachi sensed her uneasiness, although it wasn't hard to tell she was apprehensive. He walked over to her, giving her a friendly smile and lightly stroked a strand of her hair. Hatone sighed a bit to calm herself down before returning the smile. Kikuhana, still in her school uniform, sat on her bed and called the person from her cell. The phone rang and rang, but there was no answer, it went to voice mail and she sighed before leaving a message. "Hey it's Kiku, there is something I need to talk to you about, and it really can't wait. Once you get this please call me back, thanks, talk to you soon, bye." She snapped the phone shut and ran a hand through her hair before walking out to the others. "Well since you two are spending the night, you'll have to take the couch. I'll get you some blankets, just give me a second." Kiku added while heading to the storage closet. Hatone stared at her bare feet as she began to rock back and forth on her heels. Itachi put his hand on her shoulder. "Just relax, Hatone, there's no need for you to be uneasy." Itachi told her in a soothing voice. Kiku came back with a few pillows as well as blankets, she handed them to Itachi. "Hatone, you now know where my room is," She said glancing at her and then back at Itachi. "If you two need anything else, please don't hastate to ask." Hatone smiled a small but thankful smile. "Thank you, Kikuhana." Itachi just nodded. Kikuhana left to her room, leaving the two ninja in the living room. Itachi sat on the couch and put his feet up on the foot rest. "You can take that one," Itachi motioned over to the long sofa. "Alright," Hatone replied as she crawled onto the sofa with the blanket at hand. She stretched out on the sofa, facing Itachi. Itachi kept his arms folded across his chest and closed his eyes. Hatone normally had trouble sleeping when at a new place. She kept her eyes on Itachi and kept her body wrapped tightly in the blanket, hoping she would find enough comfort in that to sleep.

* * *

It was around three 'o clock in the morning. Rivalz opened the door to the apartment. He lazily tossed his backpack upon the counter, not bothering to turn the lights on. The blue haired boy yawned and turned to his room. His eye was drawn to the back of the sofa. He noticed a pair of legs dangling off the arm of the sofa._ Is Kiku asleep on the couch?_

He furrowed his eyebrows at the thought. Using only the moonlight as his light source, Rivalz dragged his feet over to the couch and looked over the back. He saw a teenage girl, about the same age as Kikuhana, asleep on the sofa. She slept on her side and her long orange hair hid her face. _Shirley...?_ Rivalz wondered. The girl moaned softly as she shifted over to lie on her back, brushing her hair out of her face in the process. Rivalz, with his hands on the back of the couch, leaned in, squinting his eyes a bit, to get a better look at the girl. His eyes widened and he leaned back. _That's not Shirley... _Rivalz realized. Rivalz looked at the couch that was in front of the one the mysterious girl was sleeping on. There was a tall man with long black hair sleeping on it. Rivalz threw his hands over his mouth to prevent himself from screaming as he leaped back like a frightened cat. Something caught him by the arm and pulled him back. "Sh!" Kiku hissed, almost mouthing the word instead of saying it. The brown haired girl motioned towards her room as she let his wrist go. Rivalz looked relived to see Kikuhana was unharmed and, well, alive. He fixed his gaze back at the sleeping strangers and then to Kikuhana again. He followed Kiku into her room, awaiting an explanation. The door made an ever so slight clicking sound as it shut. Itachi opened his right eye and stared at the door. He saw the shadows from the two people under the door. He shut his eye and returned to sleep. "Why didn't you answer your phone?" Kiku barked, while still staying quiet for the other two as she plopped herself on the bed. "I was meaning to call you earlier but my phone died." Rivalz defended. "As you can probably tell by now my boss had me work late again." He added. "But that's not important," the boy shook his head, focusing back on the main subject. "Who on earth are those two?" Rivalz demanded in a hushed voice.

"Those two are the exchange students; they were at the school, really confused, so I offered to help them. I brought them back here so they could call their hotel, but they lost the number. In the morning they were gonna sort things out so I let them spend the night." Kiku responded. "That's why I wanted you to call me," Rivalz kept nodding his head has Kikuhana spoke. "Oh... well, alright then." He felt sort of stupid for spazing out so much; but then again, you couldn't blame him. "So, we'll be seeing them at school then?" Rivalz asked for conformation. "I guess so," She answered with a stretch.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Kikuhana couldn't sleep for the second night in a row; it wasn't a surprise to her given what happened. The girl moved her arm towards the window and pushed the blind open in her room. She laid on her left side as she watched the dark blue sky slowly fade into a light blue and the white orb in transform into an orange-yellow disk. Not bothering to look at the clock Kiku knew it had to be around 5:45. Hatone was still sound asleep, however Itachi was wide awake. He hadn't slept at all really; he stood awake most of the night to keep a watchful eye on the two people who live in the house. The girl, Kikuhana, failed to mention that she was having someone over. Itachi wanted to be sure this new guy wasn't gonna try to harm Hatone in any way. Itachi glanced towards the window and saw through the closed curtains that the sun was rising. Forgetting that there were other people in the house Kikuhana got out of bed and did her normal routine. The teen took out a button up shirt, Ashford jacket and tie, along with the skirt that was the schools uniform for the girls, and headed towards the bathroom. Placing her outfit in the wicker basket she turned on the hot water.

As she started to remove her shirt she remembered the duo from yesterday. "That's right…" Kiku dropped her hands to her side, letting her pajama top fall back into place. Leaving her uniform in the basket, Kiku shut off the water and walked out of her room completely to see if she could see or hear any movement. Itachi had already gotten off the couch to check on Hatone when he heard water from a shower come on. He glanced up at the door and then fixed his eyes back to Hatone. He gently brushed a few strands of hair out of the way so he could see Hatone's face. Itachi saw that she was still sleeping deeply and decided not to wake her up.

"I'm glad one of us got some rest," Itachi said quietly to himself with a small smile at Hatone. Kikuhana walked as carefully as she could to the end of the hall and saw the boy looking down at the girl. A small grin peered across her lips as she leaned against the wall, staring at the two for another moment before headed back to her room. Itachi could hear and feel the presence of Kiku in the hall, but he didn't disturb her. He didn't want to start barging into rooms and demanding questions, so he sat in the chair beside Hatone and waited for someone to come. Kiku slid her way into Rivalz's room and saw that he was still sacked out on his bed; his legs dangling off off the single bed and the covers barley on him. With a sigh she walked over to where his alarm clock was and canceled it, slipping back out of the room and closing the door. Kiku noticed the tail man had positioned himself closer to the girl. Knowing that he must have seen her walking about, the brown haired girl walked towards the living room and gave him a small wave. Itachi glanced at Kikuhana, upon entering the living room.

"What time do classes start here?" Itachi asked her, remembering his cover as an exchange student.

"Oh, uh," Kiku was a bit surprised at his question, not thinking he would talk. He looked like the sort of person who mostly kept to himself. "Close to 8:00" the girl responded in a low tone as she glanced over at the orange haired girl who had moved a little in her sleep. "Although, since you two are new we might need to leave a little bit earlier then that. That way you and your," Kiku didn't know how to address the teenage girl with him. "Your, uh, friend can get things sorted out with the school since your bags got lost." Kiku then smiled a bit uneasy at the boy not really sure how to react now. He was just starting at her with those black onyx eyes.

"I suppose I should wake Hatone up then," Itachi responded, glancing back to the sofa where Hatone was sleeping. Kiku nodded her head in agreement.

"I'll be in my room if you need me," and with that Kiku left to wake her brother and get ready; leaving Hatone and Itachi alone so that they could talk things over. Itachi woke Hatone up with a soft nudge. He reminded her of their cover and that they needed to get to school. Itachi and Hatone got ready and waited in the living room for Kiku and Rivlaz. Hatone noticed how their clothes resembled that of a uniform.

"Um, Kikuhana, do we need to dress a certain way for your school?" Hatone asked. "Like in a uniform?" She added.

"Well yeah, but since you two don't have them yet I figured that it will be alright. That is," Kiku paused not thinking it would work, but you never knew. "Hatone, I do have another uniform of you would like to try it ware it right now. As for you Itachi..." Kiku looked at Rivalz and then back at Itachi. "I can maybe get you the over jacket for the boys uniform. But again, it's really up to you both."

"That's fine, we'll just get it at the school then," Hatone said politely with a timid smile.

Rivalz looked at the girl.

"Would you like anything before we head off?" He asked with that dorky grin of his, Kiku sort of chuckled as she watched Hatone's reaction. It's like she forgot that there was someone else in the house. But then again, Hatone, she didn't meet him yet.

"Oh," Kiku began to speak. "This is my brother Rivalz, sorry, I forgot to mention him to you last night."

"Oh," Hatone looked at Rivalz and then back at Kikuhana. She wanted to say something, but was hesitant because she was afraid if it would offend them. "Please don't take this the wrong way," Hatone paused. "But you two don't look very much alike..." Her voice drifted off into a low murmur. Rivalz and Kiku exchanged a glance at one other.

"Well Kiku here, she..." Rivalz began to speak.

"It's alright Hatone, and we don't look alike because, well I'm adopted." Kiku added with a light smile.

"Oh," Hatone felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment. She didn't like to tap into people's personal things once meeting them, so she didn't know what to say at the moment. The cell phone on the counter buzzed and caused everyone but Itachi to jump at the unexpected noise.

"We really should get going," Kikuhana said grabbing the keys to the apartment.

"Agreed," Itachi said and he opened the door for Hatone. She smiled slightly at him as a thank you and walked out the door, waiting for the others.


End file.
